Fashion Quote: Mankles from J Crew

I appreciate J Crew’s aesthetic but it’s not a brand for me: their main silhouette is too fitted and preppy for me, and I think they are too expensive. Apparently, I’m not alone in this thinking because the brand is struggling at the moment. That said, if I were on a desert island and only had J Crew to wear, I would be absolutely fine. But this quote, from Tom Mora, head of womenswear, made me cringe.

“I either crop my pants so you can see part of my ankle, or I roll them. Even if you have a big ankle it’s nice, because there’s something really masculine about those big, lumbering legs. I think it works for everybody.” (The Cut.)

I think I need to respond to this and say NO, MANKLES ARE NOT FOR EVERYBODY. In fact, mankles (men’s ankles on show) look terrible on 99.9% of men. As it’s summer and men might be feeling the urge to show off a bit of ankle with their cropped or rolled up pants – I’d like to remind men of a three things. Firstly – pants should end below the ankle. Secondly – if you are dying to show off mankle, then you’ll have to wear shorts (and in that case I guess you are showing off meg, not mankle), and shorts are only acceptable if they are Bermuda length or longer and are not worn in a corporate environment unless the air conditioning is broken and it is 40 degrees Celcius. Finally – short shorts are never, ever, ever ok on men unless they are bathing suits.

Enjoy the hot weather, boys!

Mankles image from here and J Crew team photos from here (left) and here (right.)

I personally think mankles look great on tall men, I think it’s up to a person whether to show their mankles or not, why should we care?!

alexandrasuhnerisenberg

I guess a slim mankle isn’t as offensive but it is such a blatant hipster trend and I’m kind of sick of it. Of course it is up to a person whether they want to show their mankles or not, but it’s also up to a person whether they want to read my opinion on style or not, right?

miss agnes

Laughing in sympathy. I agree so much with so many things you say. My husband worked for years at Hugo Boss. Whenever he sees mankles, his first reaction is : pants are too short. And he also hates the hipster trend. I don’t totally hate it, but getting sick of it too. It is way too contrived.

alexandrasuhnerisenberg

I am so over the hipster trend, mostly because it’s more than just a fashion trend, it’s a lifestyle that involves being obsessed with overpriced coffee and really expensive versions of items of clothing that are just normal.

I love architectural shoes, Hermès, and when fashion looks effortless.

I loathe celebrity fashion designers, Ugg boots, the way fashion has become so corporate, and leggings as pants.